Limit Break
by Jason Tandro
Summary: When the Garden crashes against rocks in the middle of the Trabian Ocean, how long before the disaster pushes the members of the Garden to their limits? With food running low and seemingly no hope of rescue, can the military institution maintain order?
1. 01: Day One

Chapter 01: Day One

"Squall, I need you up here right away!" Nida shouted over Balamb Garden's intercom.

Squall didn't need to be told that. He could feel the sudden collision, and the left side of the Garden start to sink. He stumbled his way the elevator and took it to the command center of the Garden.

The Garden had resumed its normal duties upon defeating the Sorceress Ultimecia. Their job was the training, transportation, and housing of their elite unit SeeD. The Garden itself had also been turned into a mobile fortress, which sailed and flew around the world in search of any indication of sorcery at work. Technically, Rinoa Heartilly was supposed to be the only sorceress in the world at this time, but sorcery is passed on in methods that are not clearly known, and most who receive the gift use the power for evil.

At the moment, Balamb Garden was sailing the artic sea near Trabia Garden and was approximately at the north pole when they had apparently scraped against some rocks or an iceberg and cut a hole in the MD level of the Garden.

Squall arrived at the control room and noticed the general disarray of his staff.

There was, of course, Nida, who had been piloting the ship up until a few moments ago and was now frantically pacing about trying to see if there were any controls to deal with water-logging.

Next to him was Quistis Trepe, his former instructor and companion. Squall reinstated her as an instructor and, in fact, made her headmistress of the school. Squall himself had chosen the former title of NORG, Garden Master, although people still called him "Commander".

Selphie Tilmitt was leaning against of the walls, on her knees. Squall had given her the only job he knew she desperately wanted. She was in charge of the Garden Festival and Recreation Committee.

Zell Dincht was talking to Irvine Kinneas. They had both been placed in charge of specialized units within SeeD. Dincht was the Commander of a group called the Brawlers, a name that Dincht had chosen himself and that Quistis was not too pleased with. Kinneas had chosen the more appropriate title for his squad, the Marksmen.

And lastly was his girlfriend and close comrade, Rinoa Heartilly. As mentioned earlier, she was a Sorceress and therefore was responsible for the instruction of magic and more importantly, to teach SeeDs that not all Sorceress's were evil.

"Nida, back at your post! Selphie, get up off your feet or leave this room! Dincht, Kinneas get your act together!" Squall barked orders.

Xu, the Navigator, saluted Squall and he returned it. She began to brief Squall on the situation.

"We've hit something. The MD level is taking on water on the port side. Our engines will be completely water-logged in a matter of minutes and we've already lost the ability to take all but the most basic maneuvers," Xu explained.

"How far away was our last sighting of land?" Squall asked.

"About half an hour ago. The tip of Winter Island," Nida replied.

"Okay, try to turn us around," Squall ordered.

"Roger that sir, but we'll never make it back," Nida noted.

"We'll have to try, this Garden isn't outfitted with lifeboats," Squall ordered. "Quistis, instruct all Level 1 Sabers to secure the Training Area. The last thing we need is monsters roaming the school. Zell, take your squad and a team of medics throughout the complex. Irvine, your team needs to support. Tell all non-injured students to report to the second floor immediately. Send the rest to Dr. Kadowaki.

Selphie and Rinoa, I need you two to get together any non-combat operatives to secure our food supply. The cafeteria is on the port side, and if that goes down then so will the cafeteria. Xu stay here with Nida and update me on any changes."

"Where are you going?" Nida asked.

"I'm taking a team to fortify the main gate. If the water gets in there then we're finished," Squall explained.

--

A rough couple of hours passed in what seemed like an eternity. Rinoa and Selphie's team were able to get all of the food safely to the second floor and the Sabres put the Training Facility into a complete lockdown, which was futile, because as soon as the water level reached that of the ground floor, the security fail-safes would short out. The real pain was sealing the main gate. It had never been intended to block water, and so finding suitable equipment to fortify it with in such short notice seemed an impossible task. Fortune favored them, though, that on their second pass around the rocks they had hit, the main gate was now facing the rocks. They ended up crashing once again, but the rocks got caught in the upper part of the gate, adding support to the water-logged structure.

Injuries were surprisingly few for the nature of the accident they had. Out of a class of 235 Students and 61 Staff (including Squall and his staff), only 12 students and 2 faculty members were injured. Squall ordered that nobody remain on the first floor. Sleeping bags, food preparation appliances, and the entirety of Dr. Kadowaki's office were moved into the classrooms on the second floor.

Like everything else they did, the assignment of sanctuaries was based on their companies, squads and specialties. Squall's staff used the 3rd floor command center as both their briefing room and bedroom, although Squall still used his commander's bedroom which was located to the left side of the 3rd floor lobby.

"Okay," began Squall. "I need to hear options."

"Even if the waters were safe enough to swim, the distance is too far and the water too cold. Our swimmers would be dead before they even made it half the distance," Nida explained.

"There's nothing sturdy enough to form a suitable raft out of. Sheet metal from the siding or trees from the training center are our best bet," Zell added.

"Our food supply is good. We can comfortably feed our entire student body and staff for three weeks. On rations we can make it about five weeks," Rinoa said.

"Our medical supplies are also sufficient for a long stay," Selphie added.

"Plus which we are in the middle of the ocean, any other food we need we can get from the sea," Irvine continued.

"Is there any hope of repairing the Garden?" Squall asked.

"Slim to none. To be honest I would much rather find a somewhat risky method of abandoning the Garden before I would send a repair team to their likely doom on the MD level," Zell explained.

"Well then our only hope is to wait around for another ship to pass near enough to see our emergency lights," Squall said.

"That could take weeks or months," Quistis said.

"If it's the former we're fine, the latter and we're screwed," Squall said. "But we have no other choice unless somebody thinks of something clever. Start the rationing and have a team go fishing. We're gonna be here for a while."

--

Given their predicament things weren't as terrible as they had originally thought. The Garden still had a good store of internal power, but at the moment Squall ordered that it be devoted to necessary lights and heating only. If the lights went out and the temperature inside dropped to the -25 degrees outside, things would take a deadly turn.

Furthermore, as Irvine correctly predicted, the sea was bountiful and the first fishing expedition brought back a decent haul.

Being stuck on the 2nd level was the main concern. Keeping food fresh was difficult since there were no freezers on that floor. Quistis instructed that all cold storage food be placed on the deck and she had a team construct a massive net to keep any food from falling out, should the Garden suddenly tip to one side.

The ground floor wasn't completely flooded, but it was knee-deep to an adult and frigid cold; the ground floor was not inhabitable. Furthermore, while most monsters kept in the training center had died (the Grats could not survive in the extreme temperature), the T-Rexaur clan seemed merely enraged by the change and were busy prowling through the water, eating small schools of Fastalocians that had come in through the main gate. Quistis knew that other, more deadly marine animals would soon discover this comfortable home.

Squall lay in his bedroom, mind racing. He found it somewhat pathetic that after facing the Sorceress and the entire Galbadian army, the Garden's end would be rotting in the middle of the Trabian Ocean. He knew that many difficult decisions lay ahead. Ships never took this course, and though none of them said it, they all knew that waiting was not a realistic option.

So what was left? Forcing a repair team to try and patch up the Garden, despite the incredible danger? Risk losing everybody on shoddily built rafts? There had to be a way to get a message out for help, and Squall was the one responsible for finding it.

Rinoa walked in and shut the door behind her. She could practically read his thoughts, and sat on the bed behind him and gave him a big hug.

"I know this must be driving you nuts," Rinoa said, trying to sound cheerful.

"I'm 20," Squall grimaced. "And I'm put in charge of commanding an entire Garden. Most of the staff here are older and more experienced than me. Same goes for some of the students."

"Don't forget, Squall, you've led us for a long time, and everyone's been behind you the entire way," Rinoa explained. Her mood suddenly turned apologetic. "I know I'm supposed to be this Sorceress, but I don't know how to use my powers. All I get are bursts of energy and spells, but nothing I can actually use. I wish I could find a way to help everyone."

Squall held onto Rinoa's hands. "Don't worry about it. It's my job to find a way out of this mess and I'll do it. I'll need your help, though."

Rinoa said nothing, but Squall knew that Rinoa was behind him.


	2. 02: Plan B

Chapter 02: Plan B

"Okay students," Quistis began speaking on the intercom. "and staff. Now that we have been able to reduce this situation from Crisis to Emergency, I imagine you are all in need of a debriefing." That was Quistis' attempt at humor and no one found it comforting.

"The Garden has taken on water, due to a rip in the port side on the MD level. The good news is the water level is now consistent with that of the sea around us so the water level will not continue to rise. The bad news is that the MD level is completely flooded and so there is no way to repair it safely.

We are not out of options. Our food supply will last us for several weeks on rationing (which has already commenced) and our medical supply is sufficient to deal with any injury that could occur. We are, for the time being, going to wait it out and hope for a ship to pass by, but if that has not happened within one week then we will begin preparing an emergency escape option."

Quistis did not mention what that was, because she did not know herself.

"In the meantime, this is an odd situation, yes, but this is still a military institution. Rank will still be observed here and those who do not cooperate with the staff are subject to punishment.In fact,_ because_ this is an extreme circumstance, the punishments will be more severe."

Squall had, in fact, approved punishments including reduced rations, being bound, and forcing truly trouble students to wait in the freezing water for a short period of time to "cool them off".

Quistis decided that now was a good time to wrap up her speech so that the students didn't start to glaze. "If we all help out and remain calm, everything will be fine. That is all."

It was a bit of an abrupt ending, but Quistis was never one for speeches. She felt self-conscious being in charge of so many students, despite having been an Instructor back in the day.

"Well now what?" Irvine asked as soon as he was sure the radio was off.

"Now we wait," Squall replied. "You've got your teams running security?"

"Yeah, but they're not too happy about it. Sniping monsters from the second floor bridge wasn't their idea of security," Irvine replied.

"It's essential. Any of those monsters get up here and we'll have a real problem on our hands. What about you Zell?" Squall asked.

"I've got the Brawlers patrolling the hallways. Anybody breakin' curfew gets an ice-bath," Zell replied.

Squall was sometimes afraid that by giving Zell authority he had created another Seifer. Zell never abused his power, but Squall could see him getting carried away. The last thing he needed was Zell's squad riling everyone up.

"Just don't push the students too far. I can imagine they're already at wit's end by now," Squall ordered.

"Loud and clear, commander," Zell nodded.

"Headmistress," Squall turned to address Quistis, who was surprised at Squall being so formal. "I need you and Selphie to find some way to keep the students occupied. Being locked up in the classrooms will likely give them cabin fever in a matter of days."

Selphie chimed up at this instantly. "Ooh! We could set up some table tennis courts. I saw some in a closet on the second floor."

"Not bad," Squall replied. "Although a little random."

"In the meantime, I'll get drill teams, and job assignments for every student," Quistis replied.

"Thank you," Squall nodded. "Alright, to work people."

--

Selphie's idea of table tennis worked better than Squall had predicted. She had taken over a small general classroom and put up two courts. She got Zell's help moving in a water cooler. They watched as students began to pile into the room.

In the first day, over 200 games were played in between work detail on each court. Upon seeing the effect, Squall agreed to let them take over a lecture hall and Selphie's dream truly came to fruition.

The terminal's were all removed and stored in the classroom they had been using and in its place 16 table tennis courts (all that the Garden had in its possession) were set up. The chalkboard in the back of the room was used as a scorekeeper and the room's monitor (a job which Selphie herself usually took) sat at the main desk. With Zell and Irvine's help, 6 water coolers were placed all around the room. To improve the viewing experience for students, several chairs, a few couches and countless stools were brought in and strategically placed. Selphie and Rinoa even set up a lounge area against the back wall with it's own cooler and table covered in magazines (albeit they were old copies of Weapon's Monthly and Timber Maniacs that the party had acquired in their travels).

On the third day, Squall officially referred to it as "The Game Room" in one of his broadcasts. Selphie had created the ultimate hangout.

--

"Four days left," Irvine thought out loud.

One of his students had been spotting for another sniper when he heard this musing. "Things looking bad?"

The sniper let a shot ring out, which hit the tail of an annoyed T-Rexaur. He turned to face Irvine. Now the entirety of the Marksmen were looking at their squad leader for information.

"It's nothing. I'm just thinking this might be the time for the Marksmen to prove themselves worthy. We'll need Zell's help on this one," Irvine said.

--

"What's the plan?" Zell asked, as the two friends had a clandestine meeting in a men's room.

"Squall is getting concerned about an escape, so I say we deliver him one," Irvine began. "You said yourself that we could combine trees from the Training Center and some aluminum siding and make some decent rafts, right?"

"Yeah, but we'd never get enough wood to remove the entire staff and student body," Zell replied.

"Doesn't matter. If we can build just one raft, we can send a party to go out for help," Irvine suggested.

Zell didn't like where this was going. "If we were smart, we would have docked the Ragnarok to the Garden and this never would have been an issue."

"Come on, Dincht. We don't have much else in options," Irvine whisper-shouted.

Zell shrugged his shoulders and nodded. "Okay then, what's the plan?"

"Take your Brawlers to go collect the wood. I'll have my Marksmen cover you until you get to the entrance and then we'll come down to join you and cover your escape," Irvine said. "If all goes well we should be in and out in maybe a half hour tops."

"You're forgetting something," Zell said. "The entire ground floor is covered in freezing water."

"So we'll have to be fast before somebody succumbs to hypothermia. Throw on double layers and rubber suits and we should be fine," Irvine suggested.

"Has Squall approved this plan?" Zell asked.

"I haven't told him about it yet. Think about the risk of the students. Squall's playing it too cautious; he'll say no before we even finish the proposal," Irvine reminded Zell about Squall's delicate position as Garden Master.

"You realize that this is not only breaking protocol, but it's a direct act of treason. We'll be lucky to come out of this with our lives intact, let alone our rank," Zell argued.

"Come on man, are you always such a Boy Scout?" Irvine mocked.

Zell's expression changed dramatically. Irvine had won the argument, but he was fast regretting his words. "Fine. We'll do it in two hours. Get your team ready."

--

"Okay, everybody on my channel?" Irvine asked over his headset. Irvine had chosen channel 12, which was never used because its short-range distance barely covered half the Garden. In other words, it was ideal for this operation.

"Roger that, Major Kinneas and it's colder than a witch's tit down here so let's cut the radio chatter and get a move on," said a wet and miserable Dincht.

"Okay then. You're in luck boys, my snipers on both sides don't see any movement near the entrance, you are go for insertion," Irvine instructed.

That actually bothered Irvine. He would have expected the T-Rexaurs to be hovering near their clan, but a large group of Fastalocian sharks near the cafeteria entrance had drawn their attention.

He saw from above as the team waded through the freezing water and duck into the Training Center.

"We're in, Kinneas. Stop providing cover and start providing help," Zell ordered.

"Be down in a bit," Irvine nodded.

His team rappelled down the side of the main tower, the way Zell's had. If they took the elevator to the ground floor, it would likely get stuck. Once Irvine's legs touched the surface of the water they locked up instantly in the ice water.

"God damn this shit's cold," Irvine groaned.

He slowly forced his legs to move inch by inch until he was finally knee deep in water and heading towards the Training Facility. His snipers were having an equally poor time. Irvine turned and saw one student hyperventilating. He ordered him and his spotter to return to the bridge and provide them cover fire should they need it.

The two squads met up in the Training Center. The Garden was tilting to its port side, so as they moved into the center, they were moving uphill and the water level was lowering until finally only their ankles were covered in water.

"Okay then," said Irvine. "Marksmen cover Zell's squad."

"Brawler's, let's move some trees outta here," Zell ordered.

The Brawlers set to work cutting down several trees and putting them in a net (the idea was to let the wood float together down the hall and them they would use a team effort to lift it up to the bridge.)

Fifteen minutes into the operation, one of the snipers shot at something. Everyone stopped and looked in the direction he had been facing.

"What is it, Corporal?" Irvine asked.

"I saw something move over there. It was big, but it wasn't a T-Rexaur," the Corporal responded.

Irvine looked over at Zell. Zell's team worked out in the Training Center every day and they knew it better than anybody.

"I've seen a Marlboro clan in the deeper areas. There's only like four of them, but they're there," Zell said. "Double-time it, men."

The squad didn't need to be told twice. There wasn't a person in that area that didn't respect the power of a fully-grown Marlboro. They cut down the last log that was required and tied the net to a rope, which all of the Brawlers grabbed onto, Zell in the lead.

"Okay team. Let's go!" Zell ordered.

Irvine's Marksmen covered every side of the net and Irvine himself took the lead. They made it back into the foyer and saw the T-Rexaurs still busy fishing. They moved towards the bridge when they heard splashing footsteps behind them.

They turned and saw a massive Hexadragon charging after them. Irvine opened fire on the monstrosity, but his bullets only seemed to anger it. Zell and the Brawlers scambled up the ropes and began to pull up the logs, leaving Irvine and his Marksmen in the water to fend off the Hexadragon.

The dragon let out a massive bellow and with his thick tail, beat Irvine and one of his privates back against the wall.

"Get out of there Irvine!" Zell shouted. "You can't take that thing on in the water!"

And soon the Hexadragon wasn't his only problem. The T-Rexaur's had heard the commotion and were now very interested in the large gathering near the elevator. The Marksmen now broke rank and began to climb the ropes, leaving Irvine and his private pinned down by the Hexadragon.

One courageous young Brawler jumped over the side of the bridge, down the log net, and charged at the Hexadragon with a powerful flare spell. However this only temporarily stunned the beast who then turned and spit a foul-smelling liquid on him. It began to burn his skin, causing him to dive into the water, completely drenching himself in the freezing liquid.

This distraction was all the time Irvine needed to get back to the ropes, but now the T-Rexaurs were in his way. The Marksmen on the bridge shot at the clan, but were unable too clear a path before the Hexadragon regained his footing. Irvine and the private jumped out of its path and retreated to check on the wounded Brawler.

Suddenly an entire crowd had gathered on the bridge. Students had heard the shots and the fighting and had come to see what was going on. Quistis and Xu were also on the bridge.

"Irvine!" Quistis shouted. She grabbed onto the rope and slid down the side of the tower. The cold water didn't seem to bother her as she smacked the dragon with her chain whip.

Xu threw another rope over the side of the bridge and Irvine tied it around the waist of the Brawler and instructed his private to grab on. He did so without hesitation and a team of students began to pull them up. Irvine and Quistis were now alone facing the Hexadragon, something which Zell wouldn't tolerate as he leapt over the side in the same fashion his Brawler had done before. It was a larger drop, however, as the net of logs had almost made it to the top.

The Hexadragon steadied itself and two of the remaining T-Rexaurs decided that they would not challenge this dragon for dinner. As the Hexadragon charged a powerful Thundaga spell hit the beast in the center, knocking it slightly off-guard. With a cry from above, Squall leapt down on the beast and cut the beast in half with his gunblade. The T-Rexaurs retreated into the training center and Squall turned to his staff.

"Somebody want to explain this to me?" He demanded.


	3. 03: Bohica

Chapter 03- Bohica

"Three students are severely wounded. Three cadets, under your command," Squall began. For his quiet nature and introversion, Squall was at heart a military man to his core. "That Brawler who jumped from the bridge to save you, was attacked by the Hexadragon and is now suffering third degree burns and frostbite simultaneously: Private First Class and Level 2 Brawler, James Hannigan. A Marksman who succumbed to hypothermia after the fact: Corporal and Level 1 Marksman, Thomas Kearn. And your wingman, Irvine: Private and Level 2 Marksman, Phillip Meyers."

The command center was tense. Irvine, Zell, Quistis, and Xu had reported to be debriefed. Squall paced the room casually as he forced his staff to wait at attention.

"Retrieval of the necessary equipment from the dangerous Training Facility is a task that I was prepared to assign to SeeD. What possessed you, Irvine, to so blatantly disregard my orders?!" Squall barked.

"Sir, with respect, Zell was equally involved," Irvine replied. Zell didn't dare turn to look at Irvine, but his contempt could be felt clear across the room.

"Don't toy with me," Squall said in a calm voice that actually made the strong-willed Xu tremble. "Zell is loud and obnoxious, but he doesn't have a treacherous bone in his body. You, on the other hand, are a hotshot who thinks that you can operate outside the rules."

"Sir, we weren't planning on…" Irvine was cut off.

"I don't give a rat's ass what you were planning. Nobody plans to fail, they just do," Squall shouted. "On the other hand, you did manage to complete the assignment, albeit with a few casualties along the way. That doesn't excuse your treason, but it does lighten my mood somewhat."

If his mood was lightened, Zell was scared to think what he would have been like had they failed their objective.

"Zell," Squall said. "You disobeyed a direct order and as a result one of your finest soldiers, one of the bravest men I've ever seen, will now spend several months in bed. You may very well have destroyed this young man's military career because of your carelessness."

Squall moved on. He didn't even raise his voice. That was the kind of lecture that didn't require yelling. It hit Zell hard; a weaker man would have been reduced to tears. Squall walked over to Quistis. Quistis knew she had done something wrong, but wasn't sure what.

"Headmistress, while I appreciate your concern for your students and staff, I must strongly urge you to be more cautious," Squall ended it there and walked over to Xu.

This message was cryptic at best, and got the others in the room concerned. She had been more than a competent fighter all of her life, and now suddenly Squall was concerned for her?

"Xu, I appreciate you bringing this matter to my attention," Squall had inadvertently made Xu feel like a rat.

Squall returned to the front of the room. "Upon consideration of the offenses committed tilted against the good that it did, here is my decision. Major Kinneas: You will retain command of the Marksmen, but are probation for a period of no less than 90-days. Put one toe out of line and you will be demoted, stripped of authority and the Marksmen will be disbanded. Furthermore you are having 2 letters put in your permanent file. One for conspiracy to commit high treason and another for negligence."

Considering what under the current state Squall could have done to Irvine, he felt quite lucky indeed.

"Major Dincht: Your command will be suspended for one week. You need to spend that time waiting hand and foot on the student who's life you just ruined. When that week is up you will return to your command of the Brawlers and be under a 30-day probation."

Zell nodded.

"Okay then. I trust this will not happen again. Am I clear?" Squall asked.

"Yes Sir!" Was the response from all four.

Squall's mood changed dramatically. "Okay then. So Irvine, how much wood did you manage to clear from the training center?"

"Sir, Zell was in charge of that portion," Irvine replied. Squall glanced over to Zell without moving an inch.

"I don't have the exact number, Sir, but we got twenty logs out of there. By my calculations that's roughly enough to make three great rafts and five decent rafts," Zell explained.

"How much aluminum will you need to plate those rafts?" Squall asked.

"Again, I don't have the exact number, but I would imagine somewhere in the neighborhood of 30 pounds. 10 per raft," Zell explained.

"Hmm," Squall thought. He pressed the intercom button. "Rinoa, Selphie and Nida get in here."

The doors opened and the three staff members entered cautiously. They had no doubt heard the shouting.

"Nida, you know anything about making rafts?" Squall asked.

"Yes sir. I learned about it from the Fishermen's Horizon mechanics. They wanted us to outfit the Garden with lifeboats, but Cid didn't see the need," Nida replied.

"Ladies and gentlemen this comes down to a wonderful old military saying," Squall said more theatrically than usual. "Proper prior planning prevents piss poor performance."

There was a nervous chuckle from the group. Squall leaned back against his desk. Rinoa noticed that Squall had stopped shaving. She figured he was trying to let a beard grow to look older, or maybe he didn't want to waste the water. Still the first few bits of stubble made him look unclean and unmilitary.

"Okay then, Nida. I want you to assemble a team of mechanics and indirect magic operatives to build us three great rafts," Squall looked over at Zell who remained emotionless, his head sunk as low as was permitted by attention. "At ease."

"In the meantime the rest of you resume your functions. Rinoa and Quistis I would like to speak to you privately," Squall said.

Xu glanced at Quistis. The two women had been close friends for a very long time. They were both SeeD members and both instructors (back in the day). They got along famously and were almost always seen together. Was there something that Xu didn't know about Quistis?

--

"That's weird," Irvine thought. "I wonder why he's giving Quistis such special attention."

"I don't know, but I have a better thing to discuss with you. How dare you try to pin the blame on me!" Zell shouted.

"Zell, I was just making sure Squall understood that we were in this together," Irvine replied.

"Yeah right. You treat me like a subordinate all the time. Remember buddy, I outrank you. We're both Majors, but I'm a member of SeeD. That's an achievement you still haven't managed," Zell replied.

Irvine said nothing. He just chuckled mockingly and walked off. Zell punched the wall next to him, an act which rent a hole in the wall and broke one of his knuckles.

--

"It's bad. The bone is completely broken. You won't be using that hand for a while," Dr. Kadowaki said.

"Just bandage it up, please," Zell said tersely.

"You need to control your anger, son. The more riled up you get, the worse things are gonna be. We're all pretty on edge right now as it is," Dr. Kadowaki looked around the room at the other injured students she was now treating. "There. Your bandage and splint needs to be changed once a month, something I hope we can do on shore."

"I won't be leaving. Squall put me in charge of taking care of my cadet," Zell glanced over at the Brawler who was laying in bed. His legs were covered in two layers of blankets and his head and torso had ice packs on them. Its lucky that he was unconscious, because the pain must have been unimaginable.

"There's not much you can do for him personally. But if Squall ordered it, I will have you assist me for the week," Dr. Kadowaki said. She handed Zell a medical smock, gloves and a face mask.

--

The building of the rafts had been assigned to Nida, but Xu also helped because she enjoyed the chance to get out on the rocks. The air was blistering cold, but remaining in the Garden led to claustrophobia.

The rocks that the Garden had crashed on to were, in their own right, a small island. It was here that a small camp was assembled, complete with a fireplace, food cooler (which seemed stupid to most of the workers) and some sleeping bags. Not that anybody intended on sleeping there, but it was better than sitting on the bare rock. Near the camp, the fishing teams were set up. They had been given chairs, and were now slightly resentful of the builders' sleeping bags.

"Okay team, here's the plan," Nida said pointing at the logs which had been set in the water. They were kept in place by a buoy net that was set up in their workspace. "We have to build these on the surface of the water. That means no friction, no tension, no grip. The logs will be cut on the shoreline, then moved into the water where they will be tied together with rope. This will be cold work. Nobody is to remain in the water for more than fifteen minutes. You all have your plans and the three teams have been divided. First team to assemble their raft wins promotions all around. Second place team wins honor medals. Ready to go?" Nida asked.

The teams shouted back "yes sir" and Nida blew his whistle. Nobody considered this a game, but they acted like they were having fun to humor Nida who tried to make the miserable task less miserable. The indirect magic operatives floated the logs from the shore to the water, the teams cut and tied and the rafts were coming along nicely.

The difficult part was providing an aluminum railing to the rafts and plating the bottom of the raft to prevent the ropes from getting cut. But Nida had worked out a solution for that too. The aluminum was pounded into massive sheets. When the rafts were assembled, they would be placed on the shore (one-by-one, because that's all they could hold on the small island) and the aluminum would be connected there and nailed from top to bottom.

--

"So Squall," Rinoa asked. "What are we going to do about this problem?"

"I don't know. I didn't find out about it until just a few days ago," Squall said.

Rinoa sat on Squall's lap. She was scared, just like the time she was in the Ragnarok. Only this time she wasn't scared for herself. She was scared for Quistis.

"Do we know who the father is?" Rinoa asked.

"She knows, but she doesn't want to say anything until she's told him," Squall said.

"I can't believe Quistis is pregnant," Rinoa sighed.


	4. 04: Showdown

Chapter 04- Showdown

"Students," began Squall. "As you all know our week is up, and no rescue has come. Fortunately for us, Nida's team has successfully constructed 3 rafts which should be able to survive the journey back to Winter Island. Fifteen cadets, handpicked by the three SeeD members who will leading each raft, will be briefed on the mission objective in one hour and will be leaving tomorrow morning. Oh, and Selphie has an announcement she wishes to make."

There was a shuffling noise and then a loud whining feedback noise echoed through the halls as Selphie blasted her first few words.

"Hey guys! As head of the Balamb Garden Recreation and Garden Festival Committee I am announcing a send-off tournament! All participants are to sign up in the Game Room within the next hour! Let's wish our guys the best okay! ROCK ON!"

And with that last remark there was four seconds of uninterrupted static as Squall tried to regain control of the microphone.

"Uh, yes okay then. I will now read off the students who are to attend the briefing," Squall continued.

--

The Game Room was crowded. 125 people signed up for the tournament, including Irvine, Rinoa and even Zell. This surprised Selphie, but Zell assured her that he could play ping pong with a broken knuckle.

"It's table tennis," Selphie said.

"Ping pong," Zell replied, picking up a paddle.

"There's a table, and it's like tennis. Table tennis," Selphie explained.

"When the balls hit the paddle and the table it makes a sound like ping, pong, ping pong. Ping Pong," Zell explained.

"Yeah, that's nice. But it's still called Table Tennis," Selphie said with strange resolve.

"Tell you what. If I win we change the name to Ping Pong," Zell said.

"Sure, like that's gonna happen. Irvine is on fire. You should have seen him the other day. He played two games at the same time!" Selphie exclaimed.

"Parlor trick. True skill is in playing one game flawlessly," Zell announced. He proceeded to pick up a ball and bat it against the chalk board. It bounced off the table and hit every table in a row, crossing over the net of the fourth one. In a flash, Zell was at the back of the room to receive the ball and nail it skyward, retrieving it with his other hand.

--

The room was filled with cadets that Squall barely knew, but they had been hand-picked by Xu, Quistis and Nida. Squall was uncomfortable that Nida (his only reliable pilot) would be leaving with this group, but given that he designed the rafts it made sense. Furthermore, the pregnant Quistis insisted on going because she was more concerned about the students on the raft than those in the relative safety of the Garden. This was an understandable concern.

Nida's ship would be in the lead. It was the largest of the three, because it was designed to carry supplies. As a result, the staff on this raft was only three additional cadets, leaving six cadets each to share to two smaller rafts with their SeeD escorts.

"Alright. This mission is the most serious mission you have ever faced. Unlike an ordinary field assignment the lives that are in jeopardy are those of your fellow classmates, teachers, and friends. There are 18 of you. Fifteen students and 3 SeeD members," Squall briefed. "Nida, it's your show from here."

Nida stepped in front of the other team-members.

"Our last sighting of land was Winter Island, approximately 60 miles from our location, based on the speed of travel when we were immobilized and other factors. It could be more, but it is certainly no less. That means on these rafts, it should be about a six-hour journey," Nida pressed a button on Squall's desk and an audio-visual aide lowered from the ceiling. It was a flat glass screen. Playing on it was video feed from security cameras around the Garden, which showed landscape of Winter Island.

"Winter Island, as some of you may recall, is the home of the Shumi Tribe. They live in a dome near a mountain range and not too fond of outsiders. Our hopes of making contact with a rescue team are slim to none. Therefore, with Squall's permission, I have extended our mission somewhat."

There was a puzzled look from most of the students.

"Winter Island will be our refueling station, so to speak. We'll gather more supplies and attempt to make contact, however unlikely it seems. After that, should our attempt fail, we begin another, much longer journey," Nida pressed another button which displayed the Garden's hometown of Balamb. There was a gasp as the students realized what this would require.

"By our rafts, it is at least a week's journey, but Balamb is the nearest port town and they have vessels to spare since the Garden has become mobile. Of course we will try to contact them via radio every day, but keep in mind our radio's are meant for intra-Garden use and don't have a great range. Now, onto the mission specifics. Squall?" Nida returned to his position.

Squall took his place at the front again. "Nida's craft will be the lead. You will be tethered to one another, since Nida's vessel will be containing most of your supplies. Nida is in charge as long as the three vessel's remain together."

A shy young cadet raised her hand. "Pardon me, Commander, but what exactly do you mean?"

"I mean that should the vessels get separated command is restored to whichever SeeD member is leading your vessel. You'll remain within radio contact of the Garden until you get very close to Winter Island. But beyond there, who knows. Therefore it is tantamount to your survival to be well-prepared. Remember. No rescue is coming for you, because you're our only hope.

Each vessel will have a radio, should the unthinkable happen. Your call signs are etched onto the rafts themselves and are as follows. Nida, your raft is Command Team. Quistis, your raft is Medical Team (as you will have the medical supplies and white mages), and Xu you're Fire Team (as you're raft has the Sabres and MGs).

You begin this journey tomorrow morning. Good luck," Squall saluted his team and they returned the salute, but he could tell by their expression that they were not thrilled about their task.

--

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Selphie began. "Welcome to the 1st Annual Balamb Garden Table Tennis Tournament!"

"Ping pong," Zell said quietly from the back.

"The rules are simple. Double elimination until we're down to two players at a table. When you get that point wait and put up your blue and green flags that we designed to announce that your table is ready for the showdown! From there we go 32 players to 16, 8, 4, 2 and finally the championship bout! 1st Place Winner receives double rations and a special prize!" Selphie announced.

Selphie hoped that the winner didn't mind that the Special prize was merely a paddle spray-painted gold with the words '1st Annual Table Tennis Tournament Champ!' etched on the back.

"Alright then! Let's begin!" Selphie shouted.

Three hours passed before the first flag went up, but when it did it started a wave. Five minutes later the second flag came up and within a half-hour all the others went up. Irvine, Rinoa and Zell had all made it to the showdown. The matches that occurred on the sixteen tables were truly epic bouts. Irvine faced a Level 1 MG who simply never missed a shot. Irvine was equally skilled to the point where the score 37-38 when Irvine made the winning shot. For having a busted hand, Zell did surprisingly well himself, nearly reducing his female opponent to tears when he proceeded to score nine shots in a row, winning the match. Rinoa was also skilled, something which Squall watched with amazement and Quistis watched with a hint of envy.

In the sixteen-player bout Irvine ended a match in three minutes by scoring all fifteen shots in a row. Zell fought a close battle with a Level 2 Sabre, but finally got the upper hand at 18-19, winning his 20th point. He sat down, and Selphie could tell that he was getting tired.

The eight-player bout pitted Irvine against Rinoa, which made them both feel a little awkward. It was the second-longest match of the night. After forty minutes of and agonizing back and forth game, with the score tied at only 2 points a player, Rinoa got desperate. She didn't have the endurance and ended up shooting wildly, but Irvine was uncannily cool. Ten more minutes passed (the others had long since finished their games) and finally with the score 14-15 Irvine's favor, Rinoa hit back a wild ball which flew right over Irvine's head, giving Irvine the winning point. She dropped the paddle on the table and collapsed into a chair.

Irvine walked over and shook her hand. "That was a hell of a match!"

Rinoa laughed. "How in the hell did you get so good Irvine?"

"Been playing a lot is all," Irvine replied. "You were on fire."

"Thanks," Rinoa laughed, wiping sweat off her face.

The semi-final began. Irvine faced one of his Marksmen, who had been undefeated in the trial rounds before the showdown. Irvine hated to spoil the kid's record, but he did, masterfully winning the match 15-4 his favor. Zell was forced to face off against a fellow SeeD member who he'd never seen before. The kid's name was Xavier and he'd had something of a track record in both table tennis and as a SeeD member. He lived up to his infamy pushing Zell into a grueling 30-pointer, which Zell finally came back from. He won back the serve and scored two points in a row, ending the match.

"Ladies and gentlemen, there you have it! Our very own Major Irvine Kinneas and Major Zell Dincht will be challenging on another in the title bout!" Selphie announced. "We're gonna take a half-hour break and let the champions cool down a bit and then begin the final round!"

--

Irvine stepped out onto the deck. He wanted to get some fresh air, and check on the teams which were now getting ready for their big day tomorrow. Zell stepped out to join him, an encounter which was terse at best.

"Heard you broke your hand," Irvine said coolly. "Didn't think you'd be playing."

"Well you know me," Zell replied, not caring to elaborate.

That effectively killed the conversation and the two said nothing more on the subject. They just watched the teams put the supplies on the rafts and tether them together. Irvine pulled out a cigarette and Zell shook his head.

"Put those away, man," Zell chided.

"What's that?" Irvine asked, as he lit one up.

"That's a disgusting habit. You're gonna kill yourself," Zell said.

"I read the damn label, Zell. They calm the nerves and focus the mind. Better then half the drugs they prescribe to snipers. Cheaper too," Irvine said. He proceeded to take a long puff and spit out smoke into the air. "But then you're one to take care of your body. I suppose they're not for you."

Zell rolled his eyes and leaned on the railing. "Yeah, stupid me. Not slowly poisoning myself to get the two beneficial effects."

"They also control irritable bowel," Irvine shot off.

Zell couldn't help but laugh at that. "Where in the hell did you learn that?"

"Magazine. Read a dumb study talking about the virtues of this habit," Irvine said.

"And?" Zell pressured.

"Those were the only ones," Irvine chuckled. He tossed his cig overboard and walked back into the hallway.

--

"Okay and let's begin the final bout!" Selphie announced.

Irvine had won the serve and did a masterful shot which struck the corner of Zell's area and flew past him.

"Alright! First point goes to Irvine!" Selphie announced.

The two titans played the game as serious as anybody could possibly play it. Tied at 10 an hour had passed. Irvine and Zell were now both very tired but were equally determined to crush the other one.

"Shouldn't you be tending to that kid who got injured," Irvine mocked.

"Shouldn't you be plotting to overthrow the Garden?" Zell shot back.

"Naw. I'll start with becoming the King of Table Tennis," Irvine smirked,

"God damn it, it's called Ping Pong!" With this Zell spiked the ball back, which hit the back of the table and flew behind Irvine.

Irvine picked up the ball and passed it over to Zell.

"11 serving 10, Irvy," Zell mocked.

The game resumed and Irvine still had more to say.

"You know, Zell, you got a pretty big attitude for somebody who is just a kiss-ass to authority," Irvine spit.

"Funny you should mention that, since for all your big talking, you still don't have a girlfriend," Zell retorted.

"Yeah well, at least I'm interested in women. I saw that picture of the body-builder in your room, Zell. Anything you wanna share with the rest of the class?" Irvine teased.

"Oh a gay joke. That's fuckin' hysterical, you coward."

As soon as Zell said this, Irvine caught the ball in his hand and threw his paddle at Zell. It smashed his injured knuckle, causing Zell to keel over for a second and the get back up with renewed anger. In a split second, before anybody nearby could do anything, Zell used his good hand to pick up the table and throw it at Irvine.

"Enough of this!" Selphie shouted. She cast a float spell on the table and set it back down in place. Squall rushed in between the two as Xu and Nida held Irvine and Zell back respectively.

"What the hell is going on you two?!" Squall shouted.

Neither of them said anything.

"Was my question unclear?!" Squall demanded.

Still, neither of them said anything.

"Take these two to my office on the double," Squall instructed to Quistis and Rinoa. He walked over to Selphie. "Sorry about your tournament. Just replay 3 and 4 for the championship, I guess."

"Okay," Selphie said quietly. Of course nobody felt like playing anymore.


	5. 05: Life Line

Chapter 05- Life Line

"I hope you're happy," Squall barked. "You ruined Selphie's tournament with your childish name-calling."

Irvine looked as though he was about to say something, but Squall flashed him an "I-dare-you" glance and he shut his mouth.

"It's obvious that you can't be in the same boat together without fighting, and since I have good reason to believe that you started this," Squall was staring directly at Irvine. "You will be joining the expedition."

"You can't be serious," Irvine replied. "I have to stay here and keep an eye on my squad,"

"We'll take good care of them Irvine. Frankly, if I had my way," Squall unwittingly glanced over at Quistis. "You'd be going in her stead."

Irvine wanted to satisfy his curiosity, but he chose for the moment to remain silent and accept his punishment. He had wanted to go anyways, and if it got him away from Zell then it was clearly the best choice.

"I understand sir. I haven't been briefed on the mission objective, could I have a copy of the files?" Irvine asked.

Squall nodded, and Quistis handed Irvine a folder.

"Zell, your actions, while explosive and childish, were understandable given that you were in pain. I am warning you though. You can't keep this up. We can't have two powder kegs always going off around here," Squall sighed.

Irvine and Zell now felt foolish in their own right, but were at the stage where they still insist that the other was at fault.

--

Squall sunk into bed and a familiar rapping was at his door. He groaned, but didn't actually invite the waiting Rinoa in. She chose to come in under her own invitation and sat at the foot of the bed.

"You know. For a commander's bedroom, this isn't very big," she said. She looked at the wall across from the foot of the bed where one massive dresser and desk combination sat. The bed was pressed against the wall in a militant "space-saving" layout. There was a simple nightstand and lamp next to Squall's head and just beyond that was enough space for the door to come all the way open.

The room was all red: the carpet was a maroon number that in the proper lighting looked like blood. The wall-paper was an auburn mesh, covered by three posters on the "unused" wall which his bed lay against. One was an autographed poster of Esthar's current president and Squall's old comrade Laguna Loire. While the two never clicked on an emotional level, they respected one another as combatants and military men.

The second poster was a nighttime shot of the Garden back when it was still affixed to its spot in Balamb; before a hellish nightmare sprung the garden to life and it began to fly. It was Squall's favorite poster because it reminded him of a simple life, before he became commander, savior of the world and numerous other titles which were in his mind more of a liability than an asset.

The third was masterwork of Selphie's. It was a picture of everyone who had helped save the world from the Sorceress Ultimecia. Squall stood proudly in front, with Rinoa clinging onto his left arm. Selphie and Quistis stood on Rinoa's side, Irvine and Zell on his. Behind the two lovers was Laguna, who's head popped in between them with an awkward grin as he wrapped his arms around the two. Ward, a large comrade of Laguna's, stood right behind him. Kiros, a smaller man of exotic origin stood next to Ward, but upon a small stepladder, which could not be seen in the poster. Edea, the wife of the former headmaster of the garden, Cid Kramer, stood to the far left. Next to her was a young girl named Ellone, the niece of Laguna. Cid stood with his wife, smiling proudly.

"I didn't want something too big anyways," Squall said. "Not right now at least."

"Well, I was hoping you'd want a bigger bed sooner or later," Rinoa teased as she rubbed his leg. "And it better be soon or I might just go along with Irvine."

Squall laughed and Rinoa smiled. It took a lot to make Squall smile, especially before the two had met.

"Are you sure you want to, after what happened to Quistis?" Squall asked.

"And what happened?" Rinoa asked. "Maybe I want a kid."

Squall now sat up and leaned back against the headboard. "You can't be serious. We aren't ready to have a kid. We're not even married."

"Well maybe we should get married," Rinoa suggested.

Squall now jumped out of bed uncharacteristically and became suddenly frantic. "You wanna get married?"

"What's wrong Squall?" Rinoa laughed. "I'm ready and I think you are too."

Squall settled down. "Are you for real?"

Rinoa shrugged her shoulders. "Well… it'd be nice is all, and besides I see how much you work at this place. You're not enjoying it. Maybe it's time you chose a successor and retired."

"I'm 20," Squall said flatly.

"And in two years you have done more than most military men do in their life. We have plenty of money. We could find some place in the middle of nowhere and built a home far away from everybody. Maybe some nice spot in Winhill or Balamb," Rinoa ran riot on the days ahead of the two. "And you would finally be able to relax and not have to deal with this stress. It hurts you, but it hurts me too."

Squall paced the room. "It's not that I'm completely miserable. I'd be much happier if we weren't constantly on the move, which now seems like a moot point at best."

Rinoa giggled. "Squall did you just tell a joke?"

Squall smiled back at her. "Alright. I'll tell you what. When we get out of this situation, I'll name a successor, finish out the academic year and we'll move somewhere far away."

Rinoa smiled and leaned over to kiss him.

--

"Alright," Squall said. "This is it soldiers. You're our only hope."

The fact that they were the only hope for the Garden members was not a comforting thought. Each soldier was wearing double layers, a jacket and over everything a rubber suit. It was made of clear rubber and plastic which covered the entire body like a jumpsuit. The only thing left exposed was the head, which had a hood over it. Still it kept water out, but not the cold.

They were fine vessels to be sure. Ten men could stand abreast in both directions of the two smaller rafts, and for Nida's it was about fourteen. The center of Nida's raft had four cardboard boxes filled with food, fresh water and drinks, emergency medical supplies, extra clothes, ammunition and two spare sleeping bags. The other ships had one cardboard box each with more randomly mixed emergency items, although Quistis's ship also had a large metal box with medical supplies. The three rafts were tethered together in a triangle formation, with the net that was used to carry the logs. They added buoys to this and threw several jugs of fresh water in the center, to avoid overloading the rafts.

"Assuming the vessels remained tethered, their food, water and medical supplies will be able to last a week per box. If they get split then each raft still has one week's worth of supplies and Nida's has four," Squall thought.

To combat the cold, most of the crew would be staying in their sleeping bags the entirety of the time, while two would be rowing on each side. Under Squall's orders, Quistis, Xu and Nida were not to put on rowing detail (although this was just a way to mask giving the pregnant Quistis special attention).

And with brief goodbyes, some tearful and others with boasts of invincibility, the crew of 19 set sail for Winter Island, and the first leg of their journey.

--

"This is some exciting water we got going here," Irvine said. He had been stuck in the raft with Quistis, which was the last place he wanted to be after the incident.

"I can feel it," Quistis replied with a slight chuckle.

Irvine smiled at her. "How'd a nice girl like you get roped into this crummy assignment?"

"I chose this assignment," Quistis said. "I want to take care of my students."

There was a shout from Xu's raft, and Irvine looked up ahead. Nida saw it too, and within moments the crew was in panic. Just over Winter Island there was a massive storm gathering, and a cyclone began forming.

"Okay, don't panic!" Nida shouted, vainly. "We need to turn these vessels starboard and attempt to graze along the outskirts of the storm!"

The students began to row, but their small paddles had no more effect. They were, for the time being, at the mercy of the sea. Rain began to pour, thunder struck near the raft, and through all this noise the one that caught Xu's attention was a tiny snap. One of the tethers had broken.

"The tethers aren't holding!" Xu shouted. "Grab the supplies out of the center!"

"We're not getting separated!" Nida shouted back.

"We don't have a choice!" Xu retorted. To emphasize her point, another tether snapped and now all three vessels were connected by a single line. Students began pulling what they could out of the net and storing it on their rafts. Suddenly a buzzing was heard over the radio.

--

"Command Team, what's your status? You should be nearing Winter Island by now," Squall asked over the radio.

"Squall!" came Irvine's exasperated voice. "We've hit a bad storm, man. The tethers are breaking. We're probably gonna get split up. But we're okay. The rafts don't look like they're gonna capsize, we may be able to ride this one out. We'll try to stay within radio contact until this thing is over."

--

A thunderbolt struck the water directly in front of Nida's raft and the tension in the rope connecting his raft and Quistis's snapped. Nida's raft was sucked into the center of the storm, where a whirlpool was fast forming. One student tried to jump off the raft and swim back to the others, but as soon as he landed in the water a massive wave hit him and he was gone.

"God damn it!" Irvine shouted over the radio. "We lost Nida's raft! It's sailing away!"

Suddenly, another thunderbolt struck in the center of Nida's raft. Wood and aluminum exploded and flew past Xu's raft. The crew of the raft landed in the water but were soon sucked under.

--

"Oh my god!" Irvine cried. "Nida's raft is gone. It got struck by lightning and it's gone!"

The sounds of the storm echoed over the radio and Irvine and Quistis could be heard weeping. Rinoa clung to Squall and buried her head in his shoulder. Selphie and Zell held each other as they listened.

--

The final tether gave way, but the storm was on its way out, and a massive tidal wave separated the two rafts. Quistis's raft drifted to the northeast and Xu's was pushed northwest it was only a few minutes before they were completely out of sight from one another.

--

"It's over, Squall," Irvine said. "We can't get to Winter Island, the current is too strong. Xu's raft is detached but safe and heading northwest. We have no idea of where we'll end up, but it'll probably be the Centra Continent, nowhere near civilization. You're only hope has been destroyed."

The radio fizzed out, and then the signal was lost. They sat stunned for a moment, and then Squall walked to the center of the room. "We need another plan."

"We need a rescue mission!" Selphie protested. "We have to go help them. They're both heading north, if we hurry we might be able to bring them back and try again."

"That storm is heading for us!" Squall shouted. "And we're not as nimble as a raft. Things are about to get very ugly, very quick."

Squall slammed his fist against the desk. Nobody dared approach him, but they knew that he was crying. They couldn't hear it, his body language gave no indication, but they knew it. He wiped his face and tried to regain composure.

"Get everybody up here to the third floor," Squall ordered.

"Are you kidding?" Zell asked. "That's over 200 people, this floor can barely hold 50."

"Well we have no choice!" Squall said. "Because when that storm hits, we're going to lose our tenuous grasp on the side of the island and Balamb Garden is going to sink. Water will flood the entire first floor and probably the second floor, internal power will go out, and we will be completely trapped. Get everybody on this floor now."


	6. 06: Out of the Frying Pan

Chapter 06- Out of the Frying Pan, Into the Freezer

Zell was correct, they could not fit everybody on the third floor, even allowing people to remain on the raised flight deck and Squall's bedroom. They managed to squeeze about 90 students in. The remaining staff and students prepared for the storm by laying flat on the ground with their feet against the walls on the port side. If Squall's predictions were accurate, they would lose their bearing and sink port side for a few minutes before leveling out and sinking beneath the ocean. They're only chance to come out of this relatively unscathed would be that the ocean level near this small rock was not too much deeper.

Zell threw several switches to shut metal plates over the 2nd floor windows, but this also blocked off the elevator bridges, meaning that the students on the 2nd floor were completely cut off from those on the 3rd.

As the students got into place, they heard the thunder off in the distance coming closer. There was a terrible quaking that knocked several students off guard and in moments the storm was upon them.

Everybody held onto to anything they thought was sturdy enough to support them and the massive waves began to shake the Garden. It tilted starboard at first, but then a secondary wave hit it and it lost its hold on the small island and began to sink. There was a resounding scraping of the side of the rock scratching against the metal plating.

Dr. Kadowaki clutched onto the injured Brawler in the third floor office and was knocked to the floor when the massive structure finally leveled out. A half-hour of shaking and finally the garden leveled. Students and staff became to get up tentatively.

"Is that it?" Xavier, the SeeD member from the tournament, said.

He walked over to the metal door that was shut near the port side elevator bridge. He put his ear up to it and tapped against it.

"I think we're okay," Xavier said. "The door is holding back the water okay, but there is no doubt about it. The entire thing is flooded."

Suddenly the intercom came on. "Students, this is Squall."

--

"I think a debriefing is in order," he began. "First off, we were hit by a massive storm. The same one that sent our rescue rafts astray. The Garden is flooded, but luckily internal power seems to be maintaining, although that could go out at any minute.

As for our rescue, it seems that is now unlikely to happen, so we must make our own way out. For right now, just stay put and we'll think of something."

Squall had never sounded less sure in his life. He was supposed to think of something. What? How could they possibly get out now? It was too late to try sending a repair crew to the MD level. There was a 90 mortality rate before but now there was no possible way they could survive. There wasn't enough wood left to make rafts and if they opened the doors on either side the water would rush in and overtake them.

"Squall. You better look outside," Zell said.

Squall glanced over to the window and saw his latest problem. The Garden was completely submerged and resting against the ocean floor.

"That glass will hold, won't it?" Rinoa asked.

"It's six inches thick, of course it will hold. That's not our problem," Zell said. "Our problem is if the rescue crews do come, how are they going to get to us?"

--

Cold. That was the first thought that came to his mind. As consciousness returned, another thought occurred. Wet. Just his face though. His rubber suit had miraculously stayed on… somehow.

Nida stood up, and noticed that he was able to actually do that. The ground beneath him wasn't exactly firm though. It was malleable. Snow! It must be snow! He finally was able to open his eyes and look around. The snowy covered beaches of Winter Island lay before him. But where was his crew?

He glanced around and saw two of his companions lying in the snow. A third was trying to resuscitate them. Nida rushed over and assisted his team. The girl that was fixing the other two was a close friend of Nida's. Lieutenant Jennifer Conners. She was a SeeD Member, Rank 2, and had been with Nida since his second year at the Garden.

"Jen, where's the other guy?" Nida asked.

"I didn't see him," she said. "These two were the only ones here."

A young Sergeant coughed up some seaweed and awoke. This was Sergeant Jim Hasborough. Nida had chosen him because of his special skills as a navigator. He had once done a field exercise in the dense Bika Snowfield. With no compass or map he took his entire squad around to the Trabian Canyon and completed the exercise in under a day.

"Tastes like sushi," he joked as he started to stand up.

"Enjoy it because it's all the food we're getting until we get to the Shumi Village," Jen replied. Nida looked over at her and she nodded. "I checked for the boxes. They're all gone."

"I'm not complaining," Nida said. "I still don't know how we survived that."

The other man groaned and began rub the seawater out of his eyes. "Am I dead yet?"

This was Master Sergeant Alan Frederickson. He was 27 and since he was not a SeeD member he was supposed to have been discharged and sent on his way. Nida put a good word in for him though and said that no other military institution would have him because of a questionable past. Squall let him stay, but insisted that he would do work towards becoming a SeeD member or be thrown out. He had remained there for six years and faded into the background without ever working on becoming a SeeD member.

"No, you're just fading fast into the late stages of hypothermia. Get up and run for a bit; get your blood flowing," Nida ordered. "We got a long hike ahead of us."

"Wait a minute," Jim said. "What about the other guy who was with us?"

Nida looked around the beach and then out to sea. "All we can do is hope that he's further down the beach. We have to get to shelter or we're gonna freeze to death and we still have a mission to carry out."

The others looked at each other nervously, but Nida began to walk and they had no choice but to follow him. He was right: they were out of time.

--

Irvine and Quistis lay huddled close together for warmth. The other members of the crew had given up on rowing and were content to let the ocean take them where it would. They were caught in a fierce current anyways, which seemed to have a death grip on them.

"So what are we gonna do now?" Asked a young, female captain.

"We're gonna go where we go," said Irvine. "Hopefully it's near enough to Esthar that maybe we can get a radio transmission out, but I wouldn't count on it."

The small raft bounced through the waters silently. Nobody said much beyond that point. Quistis examined the students who had made it through the storm safely. She noticed, with much sadness, that only three of the original six had remained on the raft.

The female captain was Katrina Saunders. Quistis chose her because before becoming a SeeD, she helped Dr. Kadowaki deal with injured students. She was also a master of curative magic.

Next to her was Jonathon Lake. He was a Staff Sergeant, and only 16 years old. Quistis had only one reason for letting him join the group; he requested it. He said that he wanted to help out in any way he could, and that he felt he could do more good on the rescue team. Quistis was more than happy to give him a chance. Besides, there weren't many volunteers for the mission. Despite their desire to escape from the waterlogged structure, risking the high seas in what barely passed as barges was not a promising prospect.

Jonathon's training partner was also a gifted medical worker. Corporal Ashley Jameson was one of the first students in her class to master the Curaga spell, and had been using white magic since she was three years old. The story goes that when she was a toddler, she tripped over a log in the woods. She was far from home (for a toddler) and so she simply cast a Cure spell without even knowing what it was, and continued on her way.

Irvine got up, annoyed to leave the comfort of his sleeping bag, and grabbed a bottle of water. He untwisted the cap and took a small sip. He then returned with the bottle to his place next to Quistis.

"Okay kids," Irvine said. "The headmistress is in charge. What she says, goes."

Quistis felt under a spotlight at first, but she warmed to her responsibility. "We're going to remain adrift for quite some time. We're operating on half-rations, except for water, seeming as how we got a decent amount from the wreckage. I know that it's cold, but you must stay hydrated."

The students nodded. Irvine handed a bottle to Quistis and they sat, waiting to arrive at wherever the current took them.

--

Xu's ship had been hit worse than Quistis's. Her and two of her underlings remained onboard the vessel. To complicate matters, half of their rations had been lost to the storm. They lay in their sleeping bags. Xu was too tired to debrief her two remaining companions. She felt confident that they were both SeeDs though.

Lt. Kevin Landis was top of his class. A few months ago they had a Marlboro break through the Training Facility gate and go on a rampage. Landis single-handedly took it down with his rifle. He had been put in the Marksmen for a reason.

Captain Patrick Sellers had been put in the group because of his innate gift with dark magic. Rinoa had actually recommended him to Xu when she asked for a dark mage in her fire squad.

Their raft was damaged. One of the aluminum sides had a hole in it, and so water got in the raft, soaking the outside of their sleeping bags. Fortunately they kept out water pretty well. It was high enough on the raft that there was no risk of capsizing, and the water was intermittent, but it was still an annoyance.

"Colonel!" Patrick shouted.

Xu glanced over at Patrick and saw him pointing to the north. She glanced over and saw the faint outline of the massive continent of Centra.

"Land ho," she said quietly. "It's not gonna be a picnic. That continent is dead. If my estimations are correct, then that is the Kazhkabald Desert."

The two soldiers looked at one another with uncertainty.

"It's gonna be a long hike through the desert then," Xu sighed. She rolled over in her bag. "Wake me when we're there."

--

Squall glanced over at his control panel and saw something he had feared preparing to take place. He stood up on his desk and looked at the ninety people who had been crammed into these couple of rooms. He picked up the intercom microphone and began his announcement.

"Ladies and gentlemen. I've double-checked our generator readings and am sad to say that we have about five minutes left. As you know, normally the generators are recharged by the motion of the turbines that allow the Garden to fly. Without this motion, the Garden has been using up its reserves of energy. Emergency lighting will remain on, but internal heating will fail. Bundle up and stick close together because it is going to be a cold couple of weeks," Squall said.

To add a period to his sentence, the lights gave and the sounds of the heating fans stopped. A few red lights came on, and the only sound that remained was its static whine.


	7. 07: A Long Walk on a Short Pier

Chapter 07- A Long Walk on a Short Pier

The Shumi Tribe of Winter Island wasn't exactly inhospitable. Nobody could say that they did not go out of their way to make visitors feel welcome. However the differences between them and the outside world were too great to be ignored, and there was always a sense of unease in relations with them.

The massive dome that they lived in was an elaborate mining complex. They mined rare stones that they sold and used in crafts. Their outside experience with anyone other than traders had been with the occasional military force, which was rarely pleasant and made this conversation even more awkward.

"Good day sir," Nida said, bowing politely to the town elder, who was a massive humanoid being draped in white robes.

"Good day to you as well," replied the Elder.

Nida was expecting him to ask about his intrusion, but as the Elder remained quiet, Nida put it upon himself to explain the situation.

"We are SeeDs from Balamb Garden. We are a segment of a rescue mission," Nida began.

"Rescue mission?" The Elder asked. "Well none here need rescuing. It looks like you who needs to be rescued."

The Elder spoke jovially, but Nida couldn't shake the suspicion that the Elder was mocking him. He explained about the Garden crashing, the rafts and the maelstrom that hit them.

"We have not seen your other friends come by here, I'm afraid," the Elder replied. "And I'm afraid our radio communication technology is limited to internal drones that mine for us."

"We expected that," Nida sighed. "Do you have anything in the way of a boat that we can use to sail south to Balamb?"

"I'm sorry but we have no need to leave this dome, much less sail the high seas," the Elder said. "However if you require a ship, there is a pier to the west of here where traders are constantly coming and going. There's no guarantee a ship will be in dock, but they come at least once a week."

"Many thanks," Nida bowed.

--

Xu awoke with an unpleasant bump. The raft had hit the side of a rock on the beach. The first thing she did was tear off her sleeping bag and SeeD jacket.

"Well this is different," Xu groaned as she rolled up her sleeves and unbuttoned her shirt. Kevin coughed politely and Xu hissed at him. "It's gotta 100 degrees out here, grow up."

Patrick followed suit and took off both his jacket and shirt. "So what now?"

"We cross the desert. It's a three days journey at least. We have to take the raft with us so we can sail once we get to the other side," Xu explained.

"Sail to where?" Patrick asked.

Xu honestly wasn't sure herself, but for now she said the first thing that came to her mind. "Fisherman's Horizon. We can get a cable broadcast to Esthar requesting help."

"No we can't," Kevin said. The other two looked at him with curiosity. "Fisherman's Horizon cut all contact with the outside world. That includes cable transmission. We might as well be at the Shumi Tribe for what good it'll do us."

"Then we hop a ship to Balamb from there," Xu instructed. "Patrick, grab the end."

Xu walked over the raft, and began to push it up the beach, but Patrick took the tether line from the front and pulled it with such force that Xu lost her grip. "I've got it Colonel."

Kevin sighed and threw his jacket and shirt onto the raft. "So a three day hike, you think?" Kevin asked.

"Why man?" Patrick asked. "Can't do the distance?"

"Naw, I'm just wondering why we won't sail around?" Kevin asked grabbing onto the other line. He tied it to his belt loop, a move with Patrick noticed and followed.

"Because," Xu said. "It would take about six days to get around the head of this continent and navigate the strait between this and Esthar continent."

Kevin nodded. "Then walk it is."

--

Irvine glanced over at the strange structure that loomed in front of him. He couldn't quite make it out, even with binoculars, although that was probably because an unsettling mist hung over the sea and it had begun to snow.

"What is it?" Asked Katrina.

"I'm not sure. I don't think it's Garden. We never got turned around and we couldn't have circumnavigated the earth yet," Irvine replied. He set his binoculars down and lifted his rifle.

Katrina readied her pistol as well, not sure what to make of Irvine's reaction. Irvine leaned over to Quistis who was sleeping.

"Quistis," Irvine said. "Sorry to wake you but you need to see this."

Quistis groaned and rolled over to see what had caught Irvine's attention. She then leaned over the rafts railing and grabbed the binoculars from Irvine.

"What do you make of it?" Irvine asked.

Quistis sighed. "We're about 200 miles off course. That is Battleship Island- The Deep Sea Research Facility."

--

Xander sat in the middle of one of the destroyed classrooms. He looked around at his comrades. Younger students freezing to death because of the lack of power. Magic operatives creating fires to maintain as much warmth as possible. He saw what supplies he had left, and the numbers weren't promising. They could maybe last another week or two on their food.

"Can I get your attention, please!" Xander shouted.

Everyone who could glanced over at Xander, but some lay on the ground injured or sick. Xander stepped on top of a table and set his sword down.

"It's been a day since we sank to the bottom of the ocean and we haven't heard anything from our comrades upstairs. Furthermore, I believe observance of rank is no longer mandated given our hopeless situation. With that in mind, I would humbly request that you choose me as the leader for the time being," Xander said.

Some people grumbled, others laughed, and one person shouted. "Do you have a plan?"

"I do," Xander said. "What is SeeD's sworn duty?"

Many students answered different things, others didn't care and were simply waiting for him to make his point.

"Our duty is to eliminate the Sorceress, whoever she may be," Xander said. "Don't you think the timing odd? We allow a Sorceress in our base, and our leader becomes her lover. And now we are stuck in the middle of the ocean with no hope of rescue."

"You're nuts man!" One student shouted.

"You should be shot for treason!" Another offered.

Xander simply seemed amused. "Treason? Have you not witnessed the power of the Sorceress? I have. I've seen Edea lift a vehicle through shear force of will and throw it at me. I saw Adel manipulate an entire space station. And our dear Rinoa, who has the same powers, can't find us a way to escape?"

The crowd's mood was starting to turn. There was still some objection to his view, but he had prepared for this.

"Maybe she doesn't want us to. Sorceress's require less food than regular humans. They can absorb energy from around them and use that as sustenance. Maybe she wants to wait for us all to die and then she can return to the surface," Xander said.

Suddenly a can of preserves hit him in the face. There was a collective gasp and Xander rubbed his forehead, which was now bleeding. Standing in front of Xander was the 16 year old Sally Turner, a private. Her boyfriend, 17-year old Corporal Kim Teng stood beside her.

"Don't talk such rot, man. I think the sea has gone to your head," Kim said.

"Ah, so Corporal Teng thinks he knows all about Sorceress's," Xander laughed. "Stoning me won't stop you from dying."

"I threw the can," Sally said raising her hand. "And it does make us feel better."

Kim lifted his blade, but before he knew it almost everyone else in the room had their weapons drawn as well. There were two noticeable stand-outs who adjourned to the hallway.

"Well now it seems that I am the more popular choice down here. And I control the food source to boot," Xander said. "So, are you on my side?"

Kim lowered his blade and he and Sally left the room.

"You'll be back once you get hungry enough," Xander mocked.

--

The third floor conditions were about as bad as the second floor, with the exception that the cramped conditions made for more body heat. It took some creative organization, but they did eventually find room for everyone to lay down and positioned coolers and food boxes near certain groups. Squall and Rinoa used Squall's room and Zell and Selphie sat in the top box next to Dr. Kadowaki and a couple injured students, including the Brawler that Zell was assigned to take care of.

Rinoa glanced over at Squall. He lay in bed with his hand over his forehead. He barely moved or made a sound, but Rinoa knew that he was crying. He had already lost a group of his close friends and two others had been scattered to the four winds. And now it was very likely that they would all die here and fade into obscurity. And the worst part was that there was nothing he could do about it. The pressure would have caused a lesser man to break by now.

Rinoa touched his arm and Squall sat up. His eyes were slightly red, but he looked otherwise as distant as he always had.

"Are you okay?" Rinoa asked.

"That's a silly question and you know it," Squall replied.

Rinoa couldn't really take offense at this; she regretted asking immediately after saying it.

"Have you come up with anything yet?" Rinoa asked.

Another question she regretted asking.

"No. Well I have some theories, but nothing solid yet."

"Well what are your theories?" Asked Rinoa.

Squall stood up. "I want to share them with the rest of the group. I need their input." Squall glanced over at Rinoa, who was staring at him as though he was the only thing in the world that mattered to her right now. "I need you as well."

Rinoa smiled. "I'm right behind you."

--

Jen sat at the docks casting glances out at the sea which had so far given her nothing but an allergic reaction to something in the air. Nida walked over and sat beside her.

"Enjoying the weather?" Nida teased.

"You're a smart ass, you know that right?" Jen replied only half-joking.

"Your shift is up. Go back to where it is warm," Nida ordered.

"Warmer. I don't think an arctic tent counts as warm," Jen sighed.

Nida chuckled and watched as Jen returned to the tent they had set up further up the shore. Four flaming bins sat around the tent, providing heat for the relatively small abode. It could only fit three, so Nida had come up with the idea of six-hour shifts watching the sea for any sign of boats. They would probably be waiting for a while.

--

The vessel landed with a bump against the side of the island. There was a groan from Quistis as she lifted herself up on the raised pier. A similar groan was heard when the team lifted up their boxes and finally the raft itself.

"Well," Quistis said. "Let's go see if Bahamut is home."


	8. 08: Evasive Action

Chapter 08- Evasive Action

There was a low mechanical groan as the rusted metal door opened. It was exactly as Quistis had remembered it. The decaying remains of a great research project, which ended when they found something they couldn't handle in its core.

It was probably the worst place a person could find themselves stuck, but given that they were friends with the master of the house, it was more comfortable. A screech echoed across the metal as a massive Ruby Dragon climbed up from a gaping hole in the floor.

The dragon hissed angrily, and Irvine readied his weapon. Just as the dragon expelled a river of flame from its mandibles, a massive winged being swooped in front of the party. It practically absorbed the breath and then retorted with its own massive blast, which rent the Ruby Dragon asunder. The being turned to face the others.

"Shall I know no rest?" Bahamut grumbled.

"Not as long as we're alive," Irvine laughed.

"That can be remedied," Bahamut growled. "Why do you come here?"

"We need help. Our friends are in a lot of trouble and…" Quistis was interrupted by Bahamut's eeried laugh.

"Huhuhuhuhuhuh. I know the plight of your friends, but unfortunately I cannot help them. My wings are studier than a stone wall, but they cannot lift the Garden out of the sea," Bahamut replied.

"Well then, could you fly us to land so we can get a rescue call out?" Irvine asked.

"That is a more reasonable request. However you must do something for me first," Bahamut ordered.

"Anything you want," Quistis bowed slightly.

"Anything?" Bahamut almost smiled, but it looked more like a snarl. "That is proper deference to the King of Dragons. What I seek is a task that is quite simple. I need you to head down into the steam tunnels and retrieve an item for me."

"An item?" Irvine asked.

"Yes. I dropped a very rare jewel down in the vents the other day. This jewel is of a certain importance to me which I feel no need to disclose at this time. If you retrieve it then I will fly you to land," Bahamut instructed.

Quistis nodded. She knew all dragons had a weakness for treasure and that since Bahamut was the lord of dragons, the jewel would be exceedingly valuable.

"Consider it done," Irvine nodded.

"Excellent. Be careful. The steam tunnels randomly shoot out jets of steam that are hot enough to boil the skin off your bones. It is a dangerous place," Bahamut warned.

Irvine and Quistis glanced at each other nervously and began their descent into the tunnels.

--

Xu lay on the sands, the freezing night air of Kahzkabald Desert prompting her to put her clothes back on and, in fact, grab her sleeping bag once again. Patrick took the first watch and Kevin lay beside Xu, trying to get some sleep. The harsh desert conditions meant that the day was unbearably hot and the night was frigid.

"You awake Kevin?" Patrick asked.

Kevin groaned. "Yeah."

"You think the guys back at Garden are doing okay?" Patrick inquired.

"If that storm hit them, they're probably in bad shape, but I'm sure they could have made it through," Kevin replied.

"Yeah," Patrick agreed. "What about the Headmistress's team? You think they'll be okay?"

"Probably. They got knocked pretty far off-course though," Kevin said.

Patrick sighed and began to cook a burger over the fire. "You want one?"

Kevin shook his head. "No thank you. Pass me a water bottle would ya?"

Patrick tossed him a small canteen. Off in the distance a small figure began to approach the waiting campers.

--

Kim and Sally sat in what remained of the Game Room. The two from earlier who had left the room joined them.

"Nice work," the first said, shaking Sally's hand. "And I'm not being insincere at all, ma'am."

"I'm glad we're not the only ones who think he's an idiot," Sally replied. "You are?"

"My associate and I," said the second man. "Are actually what you would call stowaways."

Kim's eyes narrowed. "Stowaways? You picked the wrong voyage to hop a ride on."

The first man smiled. "You can say that again, sir. We need to do something about this guy before we have a full-blown coup on our hands."

Sally nodded. "Right. I can't believe that Xander guy. He's giving a bad name to SeeD."

"What's worse is right now we're trapped with no way to warn the guys upstairs," Kim thought.

The second man raised his hand. "That's not… entirely true. If I recall correctly there is some old radio equipment in one of the storage sheds. We can use that to get a radio transmission to the Squall and the others."

Kim and Sally glanced at each other.

"It's worth a shot," Kim relented. "By the way, if you guys are stowaways then why do you care so much about this whole riot?"

"We're old friends of Rinoa's, sir," said the first man. "My name is Watts and this is my friend Zone."

--

"Students and staff," Squall said in a commanding voice. "I have a couple of ideas on how to get ourselves out of this mess but I confess I don't have all the know-how. So I need your input. Zell," Squall glanced skyward and Zell flashed him a peace sign. "and Dr. Kadowaki please come down here."

The lift lowered and the two waited in front of Squall. Rinoa stood behind Squall, doing her best to remain professional.

"My first idea involves something that I've been dreading from day one, but under the circumstances it appears our options are limited. A journey to repair the engine on the MD Level. Is there any way that this is possible? I don't care about the risk involved," Squall glanced at Zell, who was an expert mechanic.

"The turbines can run under-water," Zell said. "They only produce one-third of the energy, but we might be able to use that to pump out the water. As for the repairs, that will have to be done first, obviously. Our main problem is providing enough pressure to pump out the water into the sea when we're surrounded by it. The pressure would create a vacuum that no human could survive."

"Not to mention that the water is below freezing and we lack the proper diving equipment," Dr. Kadowaki explained.

"That's not true," Squall said. "We have three emergency dive suits."

"But their oxygen stores are only a half-hour and that job is at least two hours," Dr. Kadowaki said.

The room was silent. Then suddenly Zell spoke up. "Do you think it could be done in and hour and a half?"

"Maybe, but why?" Dr. Kadowaki asked.

"Give me a suit and all three oxygen containers. I'll go down solo and get those engines running," Zell volunteered.

"Zell, no!" Rinoa blurted.

"It's okay Rinoa," Zell looked at Squall. "Squall, I've fucked up a lot during this thing. Now's my chance to make up for it. Come on, I'm the best mechanic here and I'm one of the best swimmers too."

"Zell, this could kill you," Squall said.

"So what? Sitting around here is gonna kill me too, just not as fast. I can get the machinery running, repair the side of the Garden and maybe even escape the MD level before the vacuum blows my brains out," Zell said. He meant the last part as a joke, but nobody saw the humor in it.

Squall hugged his friend. "Godspeed."

Zell started to chuckle. "Get off of me, man. I got work to do."

Suddenly everyone who was strong enough to stand did so and began to applaud for their would-be savior. Dr. Kadowaki grabbed the dive suits from a storage closet on the far east side of the room and handed them to Zell.

--

The steam tunnels were even worse than Irvine remembered. He instructed the others to wait on the first floor, but Quistis insisted on coming with him. Steam shot out from every loose pipe, which were spaced uncomfortably close together.

"You know, Irvine," Quistis said. "There's been something I've been meaning to tell you. I think you should know."

"I know you love me, Quistis. Every woman does," Irvine said. "But now's not really the time."

Irvine rested his hand on a pipe, feeling it for heat. "I think we're safe."

"I'm pregnant," Quistis blurted.

"You're what?!" Irvine shouted. Suddenly a steam jet blasted through the pipe and Irvine yelped out in pain.

"Irvine are you okay?" Quistis asked.

"I've got a second degree burn, but you're pregnant!" Irvine shouted. "Who the-… how the? I mean…"

Suddenly Irvine had a horrible thought. One night six months ago he'd gotten drunk and made out with Selphie. Or at least, he thought it was Selphie. Did he really get that far? And with Quistis?

"Oh quit acting so nervous. You've never even gotten to first base with me, let alone with any other girl at the Garden that I know about," Quistis said, slightly annoyed.

"Well last Christmas I got to second with Selphie. But then you're right she really wasn't interested in kissing. The poor thing was so drunk," Irvine started to laugh.

"Wonderful. You're being a pig as always," Quistis sighed.

"I'm sorry. So, unless it's none of my business, who is the father?" Irvine asked.

Quistis groaned. "It's not your business."

"Zell? Raijin? Nida? Seifer? It's not Seifer is it? Or Squall? Tell me it's not Squall! You hussy! Rinoa and him are trying to start a family!"

"Calm down, god damn it! And your answer to all those absurd guesses is no," Quistis said.

"You're right. We've got a job to do," Irvine said moving on, while bandaging his left hand. "It's not Laguna is it?"

Quistis sighed. "Yes it is."

"What?!" Irvine shouted.

"I'm kidding. Move your hand," Quistis said flatly.

Irvine raised his right hand just as steam blew out of it.

--

"And so Alan now takes on another trial of his fortitude, willpower, and ability to remain sober," Alan announced as he marched out to relieve Nida.

"I don't think it's necessary," Nida said. He pointed out to see. "Jen! Jim! Get out here!"

Just a mile or two off the coast was a massive barge that was steadily making its way towards the dock. Jen and Jim came rushing out and began to cheer.

"The cavalry has arrived," Alan announced cheerily.


	9. 09: Resistance

Chapter 09- Resistance

Zell squeezed into the rubber suit and Dr. Kadowaki connected the oxygen tank to his mask. She also strapped the other two tanks to his legs. This would provide weight, helping him descend faster, and assure that he didn't lose them.

"Zell," Squall said. "Failure is not an option. We're counting on you."

"No worries," Zell replied confidently. "You tell my boy upstairs that this one is for him, okay?"

Squall smiled. "I'll pass the message along."

Zell walked over to the elevator amid a rolling applause. He clutched his tool belt and pressed the button for the MD Level. The doors slammed shut and the elevator began its descent. Zell could feel the air get colder as he reached the second floor, and then the ground floor. Suddenly the elevator stopped.

The red emergency light provided no information about exactly what had happened, but Zell didn't need it to be spelled out for him.

"I guess this is where I get off," he sighed.

Zell kicked in the emergency vent and saw a pool of water beneath him. What had stopped the elevator was a massive beam that had fallen, most likely during the storm. He jumped in the water and felt the recognizable sting of the frigid water. He couldn't let that get to him now, he only had an hour and a half to do the job.

--

"You need a ride to where?" The captain asked.

"Balamb," Nida said.

"Look I feel for your plight," the captain continued. "But when I'm done delivering these goods I have to be back in Fisherman's Horizon. From there you can get a ship wherever you gotta go, but I can't alter my course none. Be gracious I'm letting you on my ship free of charge."

Nida groaned, but knew there was nothing more that could be done for it.

"Thank you very much. We appreciate your service to the Garden," Nida said bowing politely.

"Yeah, yeah. Get below deck before you freeze your ass off," the captain barked.

--

Irvine and Quistis's journey through the steam tunnels had led them to a small room which appeared to be a control module. Several buttons and levers aligned the hallway and there was a massive monitor of the entire station.

"Man," Irvine whistled. "This is some pretty expensive gadgetry. Too bad we don't have Zell with us."

Quistis began to giggle.

"What?" Irvine groaned.

"Nothing. It's just that for all your fighting you really do like him, don't you?" Quistis asked.

Irvine shrugged. "He's a comrade. I recognize his strengths, I look out for him, but that doesn't mean I gotta like him."

Quistis sighed. "So… what do you think about everyone else?"

Irvine paced the room. "You're fishing for something. Okay, I'll bite, what are you getting at?"

"Well," Quistis said, leaning against a panel. "I just wanna know. It seems like ever since we beat Ultimecia you've been very distant."

"Quistis, I've been professional. I'm sorry that I haven't been my jovial self lately, but given our mission and the fact that we're a military institution I can't always be so…"

Irvine stopped and glanced in a vent. "Hey. Hey!"

Before Quistis could ask what was going on, Irvine smashed the vent with his elbow and reached in. He pulled out a large sapphire crystal which was adorned with a golden ring around the center.

"I think we've got Bahamut's gem," Irvine said. "We can go home now."

"I don't think so," Quistis said. "You're not dodging the question. What do you think of me? Am I a friend or just a comrade?"

Irvine seemed indignant. "Your hormones are outta whack."

"No, damn it! I think after two years of fighting alongside one another I have a right to know if you actually care about me," Quistis shouted.

She looked like she was going to cry, and Irvine could tell that Quistis wasn't really talking to him.

"Quistis," he said softly. "Who is the father?"

Quistis hung her head. "It's Zell."

--

Xu almost broke out into applause when she saw the opposite shoreline. She ran towards the beach, tore off her jacket and shirt and jumped in the water. Kevin and Patrick followed suit and began to cheer.

"How the hell did we cross the desert in one day?!" Patrick asked.

"I don't know, and I don't give a damn!" Xu cried. "Let's get ready to set sail!"

They turned and saw a small shape sitting on their raft. It was a Cactaur.

"Cactaur?" Xu asked.

Suddenly the ground began to shake and an entire herd of Cactaurs emerged from the desert. The jumped up and down in celebration.

"They must have carried us while we slept," Patrick said. "Way to go Cactaurs!"

Suddenly a massive Cactaur emerged and towered above the three. He bowed politely and waved one of his hands.

"Thank you so much!" Xu smiled. "We've got to go now, but we'll be back to pay you a visit soon!"

The Cactaurs set the raft in the water for them and the three began their journey to Fisherman's Horizon.

--

"Who has kept us from learning the powerful spells Apocalypse and Ultima?" Xander shouted.

A cry of "The Sorceress" echoed through the hall. Xander had made some changes to the rules. Calling "the Sorceress" by her name was punishable by death. Aiding the Sorceress was punishable by death. Informing anyone upstairs of their plans was punishable by death.

"Who has tried to teach us the lie that Sorcery can be used for good?" Xander shouted.

"The Sorceress!" the mass cried back.

"Who has done nothing but lie to us and endanger us but preventing us from using the power of the Guardian Forces? Powers that have brought down every other Sorceress?!" Xander shouted.

"The Sorceress!" came the third cry.

"Arm yourselves!" Xander shouted. "We are going to wage a war on the Sorceress! Kill anybody who gets in our way!"

The clouds broke and the army of Xander began its holy war. Two students smashed their broadswords into the metal door blocking the hallway to the elevator. They pried it open and knee-high water poured out.

"Hah!" Xander laughed at the sight. "The Sorceress wanted those doors shut. There was no water risk. She knows we're on to her!"

Three students went over to the elevator and pried that door open. One returned to Xander. "The elevator was sent down to the MD Level."

Xander paused and actually began to consider this. "Interesting. It appears Squall decided to try and send a mechanic team. No worries. We'll just wait a while until they come back up."

--

"What are you all doing here anyways?" Kim asked.

"Trying not to be observed by Rinoa. We wanted to make sure she was okay and… well we decided to sneak onboard the Garden even though she told us not to," Zone explained.

Sally and Watts rolled a radio system over in front of the door of the closet they were hiding in. There was now sufficient weight protecting them to get their message out.

"Are you sure you want to do this?" Kim asked.

"It's not like we have a choice. They need to be warned and we're the only ones that can do it," Sally said. "That door should hold long enough for us to say what needs to be said. After that… I don't care."

"Same here, ma'am," Watts said smiling. "I'd give my life for Rinoa."

"Me too!" Zone insisted. "So what are we waiting for?"

--

Squall and Rinoa sat together in the Commander's Room listening to the radio for any sign of Zell's progress. His last transmission was five minutes ago, announcing that he had made it to the turbine room and was beginning to patch up the gash in the side of the Garden.

Suddenly another hiss came over the radio and they perked up expecting to hear from Zell.

"Commander Leonhart! Do you copy? Rinoa are you there?" Came the voice.

Squall grabbed the microphone.

"This is Commander Leonhart. Identify yourself immediately," Squall said.

"This is Corporal Kim Teng, Sabre 2nd Class. I'm calling from a storage closet on the second floor," came the voice.

Squall rubbed his forehead. "This is an emergency channel, soldier."

"I know, sir! We have an emergency!" Kim cried desperately.

Squall's face was now a mask of panic. "What? What's going on?!"

"This nut job, Xander has caused everyone down here to turn against you and Rinoa. It's an entire coup. It's only the four of us on your side down here…"

The radio fizzled out and its voice was replaced with one that was familiar to Rinoa.

"Rinoa, this is Zone," came the voice.

"What's he doing here?" Rinoa asked.

"Listen to me! You've got to get ready for battle. This army of traitors is preparing for war. They won't be satisfied until Rinoa is dead and right now they outnumber you. It's mainly SeeDs," Zone said.

"Zone. I don't know what you're doing on this ship, but thank God. You four stay put. I am coming down there," Squall said.

Squall turned the radio down. He opened the door and started to shout. "To arms!"

"What's going on?" Dr. Kadowaki asked.

Squall paced the floor. "I don't know. I honestly have no fucking clue! Apparently the people on the second floor, save four loyal soldiers fighting for their lives in a closet, are against me and Rinoa! My comrades, my students, my SeeDs have now betrayed me!"

The room was silent. Nobody had ever seen Squall explode like this before.

"Everyone lift up your weapons. I am going to talk with Xander. If I don't come back, you protect Rinoa with your life," Squall said.

"Squall, wait!" Rinoa shouted.

Squall turned. "Rinoa. I love you. Let me do what must be done."

Rinoa stood, holding onto his arm for many minutes until she finally let go.

Squall opened the elevator doors and leapt down the shaft, grabbing onto the ledge of the second floor. Two soldiers graciously lifted him up and then put their rifles to his back.

"Xander!" the first shouted. "Commander Leonhart has come to see you."

Xander walked up and saluted. Squall returned the salute, albeit hesitantly.

"It is an honor that you grace us with your presence," Xander said.

"I should execute you where you stand," Squall said. In a swift motion he turned and stunned the two guards with a paralyze spell and then raised his gunblade to Xander's throat. Several guards behind Xander raised their guns to Squall. "Is this what it's come to? You have betrayed your Garden, your leader."

"You're one to talk of betrayal," Xander said. "Sharing your bed with the Sorceress. The sworn enemy of SeeD. I challenge your authority to command this unit."

Squall lowered his blade and began to laugh. "By what right do you challenge my authority? You are SeeD 4th Rank. A Lieutenant."

"But clearly more loyal to our sworn duty than you," Xander said. An adjutant walked behind Xander and whispered something in his ear. Xander smiled. "Ah good. We've found where the four traitors are hiding. A detachment of my soldiers will go take care of them. Bring them to me alive."

Squall shouted. "Belay that order!"

It was futile. Squall was no longer in command of SeeD.

"Now, my commander," said Xander raising his sword. "I believe you said an execution was in order."


	10. 10: Limit Break

Chapter 10- Limit Break

Author's Note: Here it is folks, the final chapter of this epic. I'd like to thank all my faithful readers who kept me going and in particular cerespallas who commented on every chapter and gave me a couple of inside jokes for the story.

This final chapter takes place over the course of a few hours, and so a representation of time is displayed over each segment to give you an idea of exactly what is going on. I hope you have had as much fun reading this story as I've had writing it.

--

0900 Hours

53 minutes O2 Remaining

The crews finished packing up and the vessel began its shot out of the dock. Nida had been warned that this carrier could (and did) travel at almost 100 knots. It was a re-outfitted military vessel designed for rapid troop deployment. If all went well they would be docking in Fisherman's Horizon in about three hours.

Jen sat next to Nida in their temporary cabin. They had been forced to abide in the brig, since there was no free room, but it was a decent place nonetheless.

"I hope the others are okay. I wish we could tell that help is on the way…" Jen sighed.

"The best thing we can do is go about our business as quick as possible," Nida said. "The sooner we get the rescue team sent from Esthar the better."

"Esthar?" Jen asked.

"Yeah. I've been thinking about it. Esthar is the only place with the proper equipment right? So instead of heading to Balamb, let's just contact Esthar from Fisherman's Horizon," Nida said.

"We can't. FH doesn't have cable communications," Jen said.

"We don't need cable," Nida said. "I've got a plan."

--

0908 Hours

45 minutes O2 Remaining

"This is Zell," Zell radioed. "I'm commencing repairs of the turbines."

Rinoa sat by the radio, not knowing what else to do. There was a lot of shouting coming from outside. The students were arming themselves for battle and squads trying regain their assembly.

--

0909 Hours

44 Minutes O2 Remaining

Squall sat on a bench beside the four members of the resistance that had contacting him. They all had their hands bound behind them with twine and Xander began another of his famous speeches.

"By the authority of my new rank as Sorceress Hunter 1st class, I hereby sentence the following individuals to die by firing squad," Xander said. "Kim Teng, for aiding and abetting the Sorceress. Sally Turner for the same crime. The two men Zone and Watts for the same crime and for the trespass of a military institution. And Squall Leonhart for the most heinous of crimes: fraternizing with the enemy."

Sally was shaking, and Zone's stomach began to hurt.

"Upon their execution, I will reform SeeD and Garden, and we will take the Sorceress," Xander ordered.

"Relax," Watts whispered to Sally. "I've got a plan."

"What's that?" Sally asked.

"Gathering information isn't my only specialty," Watts said as he pulled a hidden knife out from his back pocket.

--

0913 Hours

40 Minutes O2 Remaining

"Huhuhuhuh. That is it," Bahamut laughed. "Well done."

"So can you take us to Balamb now?" Irvine asked.

"I will take you to Fisherman's Horizon," Bahamut said. Irvine started to protest, but Bahamut hissed. "Silence! You forget who you speak to. I know much more than you humans and you will respect my wishes. And we're making a slight detour along the way."

--

0920 Hours

33 Minutes O2 Remaining

The small raft bobbed along the ocean surface slowly and unpredictably. Xu almost lost her lunch because of the swaying, but did not want to seem weak in front of her men.

"Ma'am," Patrick said looking up. "What in the world is that?"

Xu glanced skyward and saw the fast approaching beast. But something was hanging from it. She couldn't quite make it out until she heard a familiar voice shout to her.

"Xu!" Quistis shouted.

Xu laughed. "Gentleman. That is a dragon lord with a raft hanging from its stomach."

Bahamut lowered himself so that the raft was touching the surface of the water. He growled in indignity. "This is not exactly the way I planned this."

"Hey, we appreciate it, Bahamut," Irvine smiled, patting his chest.

Xu gave Quistis a big hug. "I'm so glad you're safe."

Quistis buried her head in her friends shoulder. "Same to you."

"With due respect, girls," Bahamut growled. "Time is something of a factor here."

"Right!" Xu gasped.

She climbed over into the Baha-raft and Patrick and Kevin followed suit. Bahamut rose into the air with only a barely noticeable struggle which Irvine did his best not to call attention to.

--

0930 Hours

23 Minutes O2 Remaining

"This is Zell," Zell shouted with enthusiasm. "I am about to begin to the primary turbine test. You might feel a little shaking up there."

Zell reached down and pressed the main turbine control lever and slowly, but surely the gears began to run. He shouted "Yeeeeeeeah! We're in business! The water level is starting to drain!"

Zell began his swift retreat towards the elevator shaft, and didn't notice the dark figure making its way towards him in the water.

--

0931 Hours

22 Minutes O2 Remaining

"Ready," Xander said as the firing squad aimed its rifles at Watts. "Aim."

Watts had undone his binds and was waiting to duck out of the way. He needed a good distraction or it would all be for naught. He grabbed his knife and prayed.

And suddenly, a merciful God heard his request and the station shook fiercely. The firing squad knocked each other down and Watts ran towards the other prisoners. They had also cut their binds.

Watts passed Sally and Kim two of the squads rifles. Squall grabbed his gunblade from the side of the hallway where it had been set and Zone had enough time to duck behind a crate as the bullets began to fly. Squall cast a protect spell over the entire resistance side of the hallway.

"It's a futile stand," Xander laughed. "We outnumber you. Sabres! Attack them up close!"

--

0934 Hours

19 Minutes O2 Remaining

"This is Zell. I'm almost at the elevator shaft. I should be clear of the vacuum's force in a few moments," Zell explained.

Suddenly a slimy tentacle caught his leg. He was yanked back several yards and turned to see a massive squid. He blasted it with a fire spell, trying hard to hit any of the machinery. He was released and began to swim towards the elevator. He took one glance back and saw that the squid was interfering with the turbines. He knew that there was no other choice but to blast the squid with a thunder spell. It would affect the machinery positively, but adversely affect the squid and himself.

"This is Zell," Zell radioed. "I've got the situation under control."

He focused his energy and blasted the squid with a thunder spell. He saw the squid rise to the surface of the water, dead and then saw black.

--

0940 Hours

13 Minutes O2 Remaining

The Garden rocked back and forth as the resistance members ran towards the elevator shaft. They were trapped between the empty shaft and a horde of enemies.

"Well Squall. Any other plans?" Xander asked.

--

0945 Hours

8 Minutes O2 Remaining.

Zell awoke with a start. The room was still filled with water, but it was draining fast. He swam up towards the shaft and prayed that the elevator was still there. He shut the shaft and suddenly saw the metal cave inward. The water drained almost completely from the lower deck. He had narrowly escaped the vacuum.

Zell glanced at his O2 meter. "And with time to spare!"

--

0950 Hours

"Let's try this again," Xander said. "Ready, aim…"

Suddenly the elevator rose into the hallway and the doors opened. Zell threw his oxygen tank into the air above the enemies and shouted. "Fire!"

A bolt of fire struck the container and a massive explosion knocked the traitors to the ground. A massive gap was now dividing one side of the bridge from the other. The only enemy left on the resistance side was Xander, and his sword had fallen to the level below.

He backed up against the non-existing edge as Squall approached him with his gunblade.

"Get up," Squall ordered. "Get up!"

Xander was no longer the cocky savior, but the cowering traitor. Tears ran down his face as he pleaded Squall for mercy.

--

0955 Hours

The elevator doors opened. Squall dragged Xander to the commander's room an threw him down before Rinoa.

"Who's that?" Rinoa asked.

"This is the nutjob whose been stirring up trouble downstairs. It's your call," Squall said.

Xander bent down before Rinoa and begged her for mercy. Rinoa kicked him to the side and walked over to Squall. She embraced him and smiled.

"Don't kill him," Rinoa said.

Xander's cowardess suddenly shifted and a grin swept across his face. He grabbed a dagger from his belt and plunged it into Rinoa's back.

"No!" Squall shouted.

Xander ran out the door and leapt onto the lift up to the control panel. Squall pulled the dagger out of Rinoa's back and Selphie ran in the room. She gasped at the sight of the blood but dutifully grabbed bandages and began to patch her up.

"Rinoa! Stay with me!" Squall shouted.

--

0957 Hours

The lift stopped at the control panel. Xander looked down and saw only an injured student barring his way. He stepped over the wounded soldier and started to smash the controls.

Suddenly he felt something clutch his leg. The Brawler awoke.

"Get off of me!" Xander shouted.

"Zell? That you?" The Brawler asked weakly.

"I said get off of me!" Xander kicked the Brawler in the stomach and he groaned in pain.

Suddenly Xander felt another hand, but this one was on his shoulder. Xander turned to see Zell.

"You know kicking a guy when he's down is just rude," Zell said. He punched Xander dead in the face, breaking his nose and sending him falling over the railing to the bottom of the lift.

--

0958 Hours

"Rinoa! Can you hear me?" Squall asked.

"I need some help in here!" Came Zell's voice.

"I'll stay with her!" Selphie said. "Help Zell!"

Squall opened the door and saw Xander back on his knees, which had been broken from the fall. Xander looked up and saw Squall. He screamed: "The Sorceress will take you all down!"

"Thank you for the warning," Squall replied coldly. "You're dismissed."

And with that note, he plunged his gunblade into Xanders back and pulled the trigger. Xander's corpse fell to the ground.

--

1000 Hours

"Is Rinoa okay?" Squall asked.

Rinoa lay on the bed and smiled. "I'll be fine. You forget, I'm a Sorceress right?"

Squall smiled. "Save your strength."

Selphie and Dr. Kadowaki pulled Squall aside.

"She's got internal bleeding. She needs sutures in the next six hours or so or she is going to die," Dr. Kadowaki said.

--

1200 Hours

The boat landed at Fisherman's Horizon and Nida's team disembarked eagerly.

"What's the plan?" Jen asked.

"Very simple," Nida replied. "We just send up a Flare spell. Laguna knows that's our sign of distress."

Jen sighed. "That's your big plan? He probably won't even see it from here!"

"It's worth a shot!" Nida said.

He raised his arm to the sky and shot out a flare spell. Suddenly a terrible laugh echoed over the town.

"Huhuhuhuhuh! You'll need to do much better than that!" Bahamut shouted as he lowered the raft to where Nida's team was waiting. He then bit the supporting ropes off with his fangs.

"Bahamut!" Nida shouted. "Quistis! Irvine! Xu!"

Quistis jumped out and hugged Nida. "You guys are okay!"

Nida shrugged. "Well… some of us are."

Quistis nodded and turned to Bahamut. "Bahamut! You're the fastest flier in the world. Please send a message to Laguna at Esthar!"

Bahamut nodded his head. "You order the king of Dragons?! Huhuhuhuhuhuh! I admire that tenacity. It's why I traveled with you to begin with. Very well consider it done!"

--

1300 Hours

Laguna lay back in his presidential chair. He sipped on a Mai Tai and watched a broadcast of the Triple Triad Tournament. Suddenly he heard a crash. He ran outside to see Bahamut waiting for him in the center of the lobby (whose roof he had just torn in).

"Damn, Bahamut, you know how to make an entrance," Laguna chuckled. "To what do we owe this pleasure?"

--

1400 Hours

"Things aren't looking too good," Selphie said, trying not to cry. She won't last but another hour.

Squall walked in the room and shut the door. He knelt beside Rinoa and put his hand on hers.

"Rinoa," Squall said. "In spite of everything that's happened you've always been behind me. I need you now more than ever. So please, Rinoa. Don't leave me."

Zell walked in. "Squall. We're back above sea level. We might be able to get some mobility back to the Garden. I'm gonna pilot her for Balamb when that happens, okay?"

"Okay, Zell," Squall nodded.

Suddenly they heard a voice over the radio.

"This is Falcon GH6-SYS 'Free Bird', do you copy me? This is Falcon GH6-SYS 'Free Bird': Search and Rescue Team for Balamb Garden. Does any Garden staff copy?"

Squall ran over to the radio.

"This is Commander Leonhart of Balamb Garden! Call sign BA1-SYM," Squall said.

"Roger that Garden, we've got 6 talon-equipped carriers flying over your position right now," Free Bird replied.

"Roger that Free Bird. Do you have a medical carrier?" Squall asked. "We have a lot of injured here who need treatment now!"

"That's a 10-4 Garden. Prepare for boarding," Free Bird said.

--

A few months later…

"Quistis, you've gotten so big," Rinoa smiled.

Quistis ran her hand along her front. "I know. I can't believe how big this baby is gonna be."

Rinoa smiled. "What does Zell think?"

Quistis laughed. "He can't believe he's gonna be a daddy."

"How did it happen?" Rinoa asked.

Quistis sighed. "It's a long story."

Squall walked into the bedroom at the hotel. He collapsed into bed.

"Hey, Squall. Are you okay?" Rinoa asked.

"The reconstruction of the Garden is coming along nicely. I got the FH Mechanics to help us out again," Squall sighed.

"It's gonna be awfully quiet with all those students gone," Quistis said.

Squall nodded. "Well I'd better get back to work." Squall got up and Rinoa stole a kiss from him. "Well, I don't have to leave right away."

Quistis smiled, and took her leave.


End file.
